Written by Regina Ender
Working for Adarga Entertainment Group has allowed two APU master’s students to put their passion for the music industry into practice. Alexandria Davila and Jamie Hart both hold manager positions for the media consulting company and work with award-winning artists and attend A-list events, including the Latin Grammy, Billboard, and Dove Awards as well as a live recording at Madison Square Garden.
Davila is the company’s Public Relations Manager and is based in Washington, D.C. and Hart is the Publishing Manager in Los Angeles, and both students are in APU’s inaugural M.A. in Music Entrepreneurial Studies class. Taking online coursework allows both women to work toward higher education while simultaneously pursuing their dream careers.
“Music is a universal language,” Davila said. “It changes and transforms people’s lives.”
On Sept. 2, Hart and Davila co-produced and promoted a sold-out performance at New York City’s Madison Square Garden for their client Miel San Marcos, a Latin Christian band of three brothers from Guatemala. This performance was especially unique as Miel San Marcos became the first ever Latin independent band to sell-out the venue. Backstage, Hart who manages their publishing, presented the group with their YouTube Silver Play Button Award for surpassing 100,000 subscribers on the video streaming site. Also, the performance was recorded for a live album, which was released on December 8th and reached #1 on the iTunes Latin charts.
“For me, it’s always really exciting,” Davila said. “We put our hearts and souls into these artists and their albums. Our heart is just as invested as the artist and a win for them is a win for us, too.”
In November, both Adarga managers traveled to Las Vegas to accompany their clients Jaci Velasquez, Gabriela Cartulano, and Alex Campos, who were all Latin Grammy nominees. Campos took home the Latin Grammy for Best Christian Spanish album for his album Momentos which represents a partnership between Adarga and Sony Music.
“It was really fun,” Hart said. “It’s been my dream to go to these events.”
Hart started interning with Adarga in 2016 when she was an undergraduate student pursuing her degree in commercial music at APU. The Adarga CEO and APU alumnus, Henry Alonzo ‘05, spoke in one of her classes and she quickly added him on Facebook to connect with him. She then spent a semester at The Contemporary Music Center in Nashville where she reconnected with Alonzo and had the opportunity to work with the company and help them at the Dove Awards. Alonzo offered Hart an internship when she returned to California and offered her a position before she graduated in May of 2017.
Davila has had a longer journey with Adarga after joining their team in 2013. She has attended the Latin Grammy Awards four times, among other major events. She began working for them doing media relations, ensuring media outlets were given up-to-date information about clients, and worked her way up to her current position, where she is in charge of press and marketing plans. Davila earned her bachelor’s degree in technical management and marketing from DeVry University.
The next big event for Hart and Davila is the 60th Grammy Awards in New York City at Madison Square Garden, where they will be accompanying one of their nominated artists.
Both Davila and Hart look forward to using their master’s degrees to further equip themselves for growth in the music industry.
“The more information we know, the more we can give to our industry,” Davila said.
